Articles by Joe Paprocki

About Joe Paprocki

Joe Paprocki, DMin, is National Consultant for Faith Formation at Loyola Press, where, in addition to his traveling/speaking responsibilities, he works on the development team for faith formation curriculum resources including Finding God: Our Response to God’s Gifts and God’s Gift: Reconciliation and Eucharist. Joe has more than 40 years of experience in ministry and has presented keynotes, presentations, and workshops in more than 100 dioceses in North America. Joe is a frequent presenter at national conferences including the Los Angeles Religious Education Congress, the Mid-Atlantic Congress, and the National Conference for Catechetical Leadership. He is the author of numerous books, including the best seller The Catechist’s Toolbox, A Church on the Move, Under the Influence of Jesus, and Called to Be Catholic—a bilingual, foundational supplemental program that helps young people know their faith and grow in their relationship with God. Joe is also the series editor for the Effective Catechetical Leader and blogs about his experiences in faith formation at www.catechistsjourney.com.

Fourth Sunday of Lent, Year C

Joe Paprocki

The Pharisees taught a very scrupulous observance of Jewish Law. In their interpretation and practice, observant Jews who shared table fellowship with sinners would be made unclean. Like Jesus, the Pharisees hoped to lead sinners back to God. The Pharisees, however, required that sinners first become ritually clean—observant of the Pharisees’ interpretation of Jewish Law—before sharing table fellowship. This appears to be one of the major differences between the Pharisees and Jesus. Jesus reaches out […]

An Umbrella of Mercy

Joe Paprocki

My friend and colleague, Kathy Donnelly, sent this wonderful story along to me. According to Sr. Phyllis Schenk, O.P., the Director of Religious Education at Resurrection Parish in Illiopolis, Illinois, the parish installed an Umbrella of Mercy in the church for the Year of Mercy. Under the umbrella are Loyola Press Beatitude Cards and small wooden plaques. Parishioners are encouraged to take a Beatitude Card home and to write on the plaque a time when they were shown mercy […]

Third Sunday of Lent, Year C

Joe Paprocki

Turning away from sin is a good thing. However, it is possible to turn away from sin and still not know where you are going! Repentance is concerned not primarily with the act of turning away from sin but with turning toward God. When we run toward God, we will turn our backs on sin, but our focus will not be on our sins but on the loving mercy of God that we seek to […]

Using Sacred Space for Small Faith Groups

Joe Paprocki

One of the most important “ingredients” for small faith groups is establishing a climate of prayer at the beginning of a session. Small groups each have their own unique focus: exploring the Sunday Scripture readings, discussing a book, watching and discussing a video series, and so on. What remains constant, however, is the need to create a climate of prayer in which the “work” of the group takes place. Some of the resources that small […]

Second Sunday of Lent, Year C

Joe Paprocki

It’s not unusual to ask someone with headphones on what they are listening to. Nowadays, folks spend large amounts of time listening to music or talk radio. We always seem to be listening to someone or something. In this Sunday’s story of the Transfiguration of Jesus, a voice from heaven tells Peter, James, and John, “This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him.” The Transfiguration of Jesus was a moment of focus […]

First Sunday of Lent, Year C

Joe Paprocki

In Luke’s Gospel, the story of Jesus’ temptation in the desert appears just after Jesus’ baptism and before Jesus begins his public ministry. We can imagine this as a time of transition, a turning point in Jesus’ life. Perhaps we can liken it to one of the important turning points in our own lives: the decision to marry, the birth of a child, the acceptance of a new job, or the decision to move to […]

God Provides! Small Faith Groups Update

Joe Paprocki

As I reported a couple of weeks ago, I am assisting Christ the King Parish in Chicago in implementing small faith groups for the Lenten season. We did many preparations to get this initiative off the ground, including the following: recruiting small-group leaders displaying posters and signs on parish grounds training leaders advertising with bulletin announcements for the month of January having priests speak at all the Masses on January 17 hosting Sign-Up Sunday on […]

Getting Ready for Ash Wednesday

Joe Paprocki

Realizing that over the next few days, many of you will be preparing people for Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent, I thought I would remind you of some resources that might be of assistance to you. Ashes (blog post) What’s That on Your Forehead? (my popular Ash Wednesday post) Lent FAQ with Joe Paprocki (video) Arts & Faith: Ash Wednesday (video with transcript and activity) What is Ash Wednesday? (video from De La […]

Beginning a Homily Prep Ministry

Joe Paprocki

Is preaching homilies a challenge? Certainly. Any congregation can appreciate the fact that it is not possible to be spectacular week in and week out. By the same token, this is precisely why (theoretically) only specific individuals are ordained for this task: they are supposed to be individuals with a charism for preaching who have undergone extensive training and formation to hone that skill for the good of God’s People, the Church. Thus, homilists have no […]

God's Gift DVDs for sacramental preparation

Great Resources for Sacramental Preparation

Joe Paprocki

I’m very excited to tell you about some wonderful resources for sacramental preparation from Loyola Press! A new edition of the already popular God’s Gift program for First Eucharist and First Reconciliation, available in English and bilingual versions, includes some wonderful new features: God’s Gift Intermediate was developed to pass on the truth and beauty of the sacraments to teens or other young people preparing to celebrate the sacraments out of typical sequence. God’s Gift: […]